This book presents important discourses that deal with the Healing Buddha in his various manifestations and discusses the many symbols, colors, and deities that are used as objects of meditation. The accompanying photographs of sculptures, paintings, and mandalas demonstrate the importance of art and 'sthetic experience in Buddhist healing practice. Also included is a history of healing in the development of Buddhism from the earliest texts and the famous Lotus Sutra to the Buddhism of Tibet, where elaborate ritual is used in the healing of body and mind. Some of the many herbs and medicines used to treat disease in the Buddhist cultures of Asia are described in an appendix. A new preface and a new essay on the search for long life in Chinese Buddhism have been added to this revised edition.
Healing Buddha, Raoul Birnbaum, Shambhala Publications, Paperback, 289 pages, $25.95
Raoul Birnbaum holds a doctorate in Buddhism and Chinese Religions from Columbia University. He is now a member of the Department of Religion at Princeton University.
Foreword ix
Preface to the Revised Edition xiii
Acknowledgments xix
PART ONE
The Divine Healer in Buddhism: A Study of the Lapis Lazuli Radiance Buddha, Master of Healing
I. Concepts of Healing in Early Buddhism 3
II. The Bodhisattvas of Healing 24
III. The Lapis Lazuli Radiance Buddha, Master of Healing, and His Buddha Brothers 52
IV. Images, Meditations, and Ritual Worship 77
PART TWO
Translations from the Chinese Buddhist Canon
I. Sutra Spoken by the Buddha on the Contemplation of the Two Bodhisattvas, King of Healing and Supreme Healer, from the Chinese version of Kalayasas (ca. 424), T. XX, 1161 115
II. Preface to the Sutra on the Merits of the Fundamental Vows of the Master of Healing Tathagata, by Hui-chu (617), T. XIV, 449 149
III. Sutra on the Merits of the Fundamental Vows of the Master of Healing, the Lapis Lazuli Radiance Tathagata, from the Chinese version of Hsuan-tsang (650), T. XIV, 450 151
IV. Sutra on the Merits of the Fundamental Vows of the Seven Buddhas of Lapis Lazuli Radiance, the Masters of Healing, from the Chinese version of I-ching (707), T. XIV, 451 173
APPENDICES
I. Healing Agents in the Pali Canon 221
II. References to Bodhisattvas of Healing in the Chinese Buddhist Canon 224
III. References to the Buddha of Healing in the Chinese Buddhist Canon 228
IV. Chinese Character List 232
V. Seeking Longevity in Chinese Buddhism: Long Life Deities and Their Symbolism 238
Selected Bibliography 274
Index 280
Plates appear between pages 76 and 77.
